Fleeting Breath
by Bomichan
Summary: Silver Millennium, Pulled from her life on Mars,Rei is forced to begin a new life on the Moon to train as a Senshi. She must learn about friendship, love, and carve her own place as one of the legendary solders.ReiMinako, Shoujo Ai warning.
1. Prologue

Mars the red planet, 4th from the sun and closest to the moon has always been known for the ferocity of its people and its harsh climate. This was a planet devoted to the fiery passion of battle.

Life on the red planet was difficult and often marred by large dust storms that could last for days. It was no wonder that the people were known throughout the galaxy for their tough exterior and resilience. But the red planet of Mars had its own unique beauty that often only its people could truly appreciate. And currently that beauty was getting smaller and smaller from the window of the transporter shuttle which one of Mar's own princess's looked out of.

A soft sigh echoed in the lonely transporter, violet eyes closed briefly, burning the red planet into memory. For all the lonely princess knew this would be the last she ever saw of her home world.

Today was the start of a new chapter in the young princess's life, her new life as a Sailor Senshi in Queen Serenity's court. According to the herald the time for training of the new senshi had come and each planet was to send a princess which possessed that planet's gift.

For the fiery planet's princess, Princess Rei, her gift was unmistakable. At the age of five Rei had been unable to fully control her then manifesting power and would randomly start fires around the palace much to her parent's dismay. At first her parents thought she was simply clumsy with the many lanterns. However when at dinner one day five year old Rei had happily exclaimed that the fire spirits wanted to play . In confusion her father asked his youngest daughter what she meant only to watch in horror as his five year old's hands spontaneously burst into flame. Franticly the King of Mars had tried to put out the fire on his giggling daughter's hands before realizing the young girl was not being hurt by the flames. He then promptly sent off his youngest daughter into the care of one of the few hidden villages of Mars to properly hone her gift.

The hidden villages of Mars were one of the planet's greatest kept secrets where the arts of fighting were honed, practiced, and nurtured to near inhuman levels. The galaxy's most uniquely gifted fighters lived in these villages hidden deep below the surface of Mars where they trained relentlessly. It was here that the youngest Princess of Mars learned to control her affinity to fire and where her blossoming gift of clairvoyance was discovered.

' If only I didn't have to go to the moon, I could have finished my training' The young princess thought darkly.

The young princess had been a quick study surprising her teachers over and over again. By the age of 14 Rei's talent with the fire element had grown substantially and with a mere look could light giant braziers. The elder's had never been so proud that one of the royal family would exhibit the amount of control that this young girl had. Even those with blood talents, talents found only in certain families, rarely had the control that their youngest princess had. It was refreshing, it commanded the pride and awe of many of the villagers, and it was something whose roots the princess would have to keep secret.

The official story had been that once Rei manifested her senshi power's she had been sent to a remote temple to learn to control her budding talents. Her father, the King of Mars had been careful to have Rei well versed in the ways of the priestess of her home planet to keep up the facade. The hidden villages he warned was a secret only select Martians and her Highness Queen Serenity knew of, it was then imperative that the secret be kept at all cost.

That was why on her trip to the Moon Kingdom Rei found herself in the traditional robes the priestess of Mars instead of her usual attire. The young princess sorely missed the comfort of her soft cotton shirts and pants. However she refused to give up her black leather bracers and kept her two daggers on her person. Priestess clothes or not she would not give up the comfort and security of her twin blades. She was after all a princess of the planet of war, it was expected.

Another sigh escaped Rei's lips as the words from the letter of Queen Serenity once again ran through her mind. She would be expected to work with the princess from other planets while also receiving special instruction, due to Rei's ability with clairvoyance, from the mysterious Sailor Pluto herself.

'I hope it's not true that she can read minds, otherwise I'm screwed', Rei thought darkly, 'I don't want to become a senshi; I want to go home to the village and sit and listen to the elder's talk. I don't want to go.The young princess sighed one last time before stealing herself. Her trip was nearing its end and soon she would be in the Moon Kingdom itself.

With a calming breath the dark haired seven-teen year old closed her eyes and focused on centering herself. With her mask of calm in place the dark haired princess began to arrange her garments. She checked the long flowing sleeves of her dark colored robe making sure that the markings of her station were clearly visible before taking her long hair and tying it into a braid. When her hair was properly tied and hanging down her back in a long rope she carefully donned a simple travel hat and tied it under her chin, arranging it so that the wide flat hat would obscure most of her face. With her attire in place and properly arranged the princess silently waited, her only sign of nervousness was the whiteness of her knuckles.

' Bow low to the Queen, wait to be spoken to before addressing yourself, never look her in the eyes unless given the proper indication to, always keep your head inclined… there are too many rules' Rei thought darkly a hint of anxiety creeping up her spine , 'I can do this, I am Mars Rei, Princess of the Planet of War. I am the avatar of Mars, I am no coward.'

"Your highness?" Interrupted from her musings Rei looked up into eyes that barely hid the servant's excitement. Rei knew she had reached their destination. With a squaring of her shoulders the Princess of Mars stood from her seat and made one last adjustment to her robes.

"I'm ready"

End Prologue


	2. Chapter 1

**I'm taking a slightly different view of Rei and I'm mixing a bit of the modern reincarnation of Hino Rei with the Silver Millennium version. Ever since I was a little girl I envisioned the Princess of Mars as being this sophisticated lady with two Ravens like her predecessor Hino Rei had. For those who have read the Manga we know that her ravens Phobos and Deimos had a human form. I've always liked that idea. In this story, I'll try to chronicle a bit of the journey Rei takes to become that sophisticated lady in my head.**

** Rei's tattoo is the Tomoe which is a symbol often associated with the Shinto god of war Hachiman.  
**

**Also for those who do not know what a ****Kogok ****is, I provided this little explanation.** **In ancient Korea these were only worn by royalty on their crowns, earrings, and necklaces. In Japan it is called Magatama, and was also worn by royalty and if I'm not mistaken became one of 3 items of royal regalia. The Kogok or Magatama has a spiritual significance to it; it signifies the human spirit and is a ward against malicious spirits. The color is also important because the different stones have meaning also; in Rei's instance I gave her the amethyst one because it is a ward against evil spirits. **

**Arisela – Amazing, my first review and you hit the nail on the head. I had really debated about keeping that line in the prologue. I see now that I probably should have worked that section a bit differently. They way I rationalized keeping the line to myself was Rei is in essence still a 17 year old girl, just on the cusp of completing mental development. No matter how extraordinary she is, how mature for her age she is, she is still a 17 year old not 100 developed with still a long way to go. I tried to show that, looks like I failed. I'll try harder next time .**

**Secretedreamer- Thanks, I'll do my best.**

**Trusuprise- Thank you, it means a lot. I really enjoy priestess robes and any excuse to get a character like Rei into them I believe should be taken.**

**Wolvenkite- I hope I live up to the potential, I feel pressure now lol. I decided to make the Senshi a little bit older ( 17,18) because I have a difficult time writing 14-15 year olds without making them sound like brats. I think that is my psychology background limiting me.**

**LunarMiko07- Thank you for reading, I hope I continue to please. .**

Chapter 1.

'They really outdid themselves' the dark haired girl thought as she strolled through the large suite she had been given.

Crimson curtains with large brass candle sticks adorned the walls. In an absent minded way the Princess of Mars flicked the index finger of her right hand as she took in the lush room she had been assigned. Large plush chairs stood proudly around an ebony coffee table in a sitting room framed with large windows. The sun shone brightly into the room through glass doors leading to a balcony overlooking the palace gardens. In the background a lone candle by the door flared to life in time with the flicking of the young Princess's fingers.

Through a set of impressive double doors stood a magnificent bedroom, a large four poster bed sprawled out in the middle of the room was adorned with sheets the color of rubies. A dark ebony fireplace gazed out across the room proudly like a master surveying his land. Next to the fireplace stood a matching ebony clock, its ancient appeal drew the princess to it begging to be touched and admired.

Rei complied dragging a single finger down the side of the large clock, idly wondering if the old time piece would sound as brazen as it looked. It was a marvelous bedroom filled with blood red colors and ebony furniture; it had an air of sensual and exotic flavor fitting any heir of Mars.

'I feel like I'm in an over stuffed cage' Rei huffed.

" _Mars Rei, I'm so glad to finally meet you", The softness of Queen Serenity's voice did little to hide the authority the ruler commanded, and for the first time in seven-teen years the Princess of Mars truly felt complete reverence. _

"_Lift your head, let me get a good look at you" The Queen urged like a grandmother laying eyes on a long lost granddaughter after many years of absence. _

_Rei cautiously did as she was told, her travel hat clutched tightly in her left hand, violet eyes slowly lifting toward the great white throne, following the folds of a long white dress, meeting the kind grey eyes of the Queen of the Moon Kingdom briefly before quickly averting to the foot of the throne. She could feel all the eyes in the room inspecting her, not only the Queen's Rei unconsciously straightened her shoulders, and resisted the urge to shuffle her feet like a shy child. _

_Just when the Princess of Mars had reached her limit a soft chuckle cut through the tension in the hall and Rei released a breath she had not realized she had been holding. Daring another quick look into the Monarch's eyes revealed the source of the soft chuckle which was complemented by twinkling grey eyes._

"_You look just like your mother Princess Rei. She was quite the beauty in her day, still is." The twinkle in those grey eyes shone brightly to the young Martian but before she had a chance to ponder the meaning deeply a tall dark skinned woman entered the throne room. The stranger had long exquisite green hair and flashing red eyes that immediately caught the Princess's attention,' this is not a woman to trifle with' the Rei thought darkly. _

_Breaking eye contact with the mysterious stranger Rei realized too late that the kindly Monarch had been speaking to the distracted Martian Princess._

_Training would begin in a week, as the last princess to arrive she was expected to attend a welcome ball which was to be held that night. Rei nodded her head respectfully as the Queen continued, but her mind was on the green haired women, she was sure that was the one that whispers called the Time Guardian. The aura around this woman was unreadable in a way the young princess had never seen before. The colors of her aura swirled around her, constantly shifting as if they floated on the surface of the ocean blending and mixing together. Rei could hardly keep herself from staring._

With a snap of her fingers the dark princess simultaneously brought herself back from her reverie and caused the large hearth behind her to roar to life instantly relaxing the girl and pulling her from her musings on the dark stranger.

Mechanically the Princess of Mars began to ready herself for the ball that night. She had brought her two Ravens Phobos and Deimos from the village with her and the Queen has assured her the two Ravens would be kept in the Palace gardens. Dressed in classic Martian dress robes, with the seal of the Martian Royal family emblazed on the front, Rei wandered out to her balcony to look out over the gardens.

She heard the flapping of two pairs of wings before she heard her beloved companion's calling and before she knew it two large jet black ravens's perched before her on the stone railing.

"You've been waiting, I'm sorry I took so long" the dark haired princess murmured kindness filling her eyes first the first time since arriving. The two large ravens sounded their displeasure at their mistress, fluffing their feathers in protest.

"I know, I'm sorry you were cooped up" The princess offered as she smoothed the feather's on both birds. Satisfied with their apology Phobos hopped onto the Princess's arm and she graciously lifted it allowing the Raven to navigate its way to her shoulder. Deimos on the other hand remained on the stone ledge content under the caressing hand of his mistress. Unknown to the dark haired Martian princess a pair of bright cerulean eyes had curiously watched the whole display from the garden below.

A swift knock at the door yanked the thoughtful princess from her reverie and startling the raven on her shoulder. Agitated Rei replied and a tall servant dressed in a white tunic and pants with a crescent moon embodied on the breast stiffly emerged from behind the door. The Princess of Mars must have looked intimidating in her black ceremonial robe with it's bright red knotted pattern weaving its way up the fabric to seemingly end at the large Raven perched the princess's shoulder for the servant's eyes went wide. With a shaky voice the servant informed the bemused princess that the Queen of Mars had sent a dress a few days prior to Rei's arrival.

"The Queen of Mars wanted you to wear this dress to tonight's ball your Highness." The servant said in a quivering voice then gulped at Rei's sharp look before continuing hurriedly, "A-a late birthday present"

The servant then nearly thrust the package into the Princess's arms before making a quick retreat. Rei remained standing by the door shock turning her body rigid; only the cawing of Deimos from the balcony and the gently nudging of Phobos on her shoulder shook her back to reality.

Rei seemed to move in hyper mode after that spinning on her heel so quickly that Phobos flew from her shoulder with an agitated caw but Rei paid him little attention. Within minutes Rei had the package open revealing its contents a simple but elegant black evening dress. Blinking back a sudden rush of tears Rei realized this was one of her mother's favorite dresses.

Some time later the Princess of Mars stood before the full length mirror in the corner of her bedroom. The evening dress her mother had sent fit perfectly. The thin straps at the top flowed down into a V over her chest, showing just enough cleavage to be sexy but not too much. The black color of the dress accentuated Rei's creamy complexion, and also the small tattoo of the war god's three interlocking flames on her shoulder. The dark haired princess examined her reflection critically, something was missing.

After a moment of thought she reached down and retrieved a purple pendant from her vanity and strung it around her neck. The pendant, a Kogok made of amethyst, was given to her after her clairvoyant abilities had been discovered. The curved purple stone had rarely left her person ever since. With one last look Rei took a deep breath and touched the Kogok hanging from her neck, and headed for the door.

End chapter 1.


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

"Announcing Princess Mars Rei" The voice of the herald shook the ballroom causing a temporary stillness as hundreds of curious eyes turned toward the grand staircase entrance for a glimpse of the elusive Princess of Mars. A hush fell over the room as patrons unconsciously shuffled closer for a better view of the thick doors atop the stairs.

The royal family of Mars was notorious for only appearing at public functions only occasionally, so it was a rare treat to see a Martian of the royal family in all their finery and formality. Until now no one outside of the Mars had seen the youngest princess at any public function, and even those who had seen her were mainly the people who trained her. Mars Rei was an enigma.

All of the nobles knew the official story was that the youngest princess of Mars had manifested the planet's gift early and had gone to train with Martian Priestesses thus her apparent absence from all court gatherings but that didn't stop the rumors. It was whispered that the Martian royal family had locked the young girl away due to the uncontrollability of her gift. Other's said that the youngest princess was deformed and so hidden away. And one outlandish rumor stated that there was no Princess Rei it was all a hoax.

So it was no surprise that all those attending the ball held their collective breath as Rei tentatively stepped out onto the platform. The ebony haired Princess blinked in astonishment at the sheer number of people which seemed to push even closer to glimpse her. Hundreds of pairs of eyes greeted the flabbergasted princess however her shocked face quickly closed down into a mask of cool detachment. Like a splash of cold water Rei was reminded of her station, and nervousness was never allowed to be shown.

'I'm a Princess of Mars, Avatar of Fire, trained at one of the legendary hidden villages of Mars, I am Mars Rei and I don't become nervous at the sight of a bunch of gawking, staring strangers.'

With her chin up at a defiant angle, shoulders set squarely, and a small frown on her face Rei began to descend the stairs one at a time concentrating on just standing upright in her fancy heels. Only then as she descended, back straight, her black dress swishing elegantly around her, that the crowd shook itself from its self imposed stupor with a soft murmur of conversation filling the room once more.

Rei was bored. Two hours had passed along with a multitude of nobles and aristocrats eager for a glimpse of the elusive Princess Rei of Mars. The raven haired Martian had never enjoyed politics, court affairs, or general gossip for that matter and it seems as if gossip and intrigue were the only topics the nobles cared to discuss. Not for the first time that night did the Princess look longingly toward the balcony away from the incessant buzzing and into the quiet night air. A sudden wave of homesickness washed over Rei if she were still on Mars she would be just coming in from training and settling down to meditate but instead she was here on the moon. The current noble she was politely nodding to was from Jupiter, his name already forgotten to the bored princess his face only one of many.

"Excuse me" a soft voice interrupted causing both Rei and the rotund noble she was standing with to pause.

Standing politely to the side was a slender girl about Rei's age with short blue hair and dressed in a flowing white dress. 'Obviously from Mercury with the blue hair and pale skin' thought the raven haired princess. Rei's eyes sharpened on the seemingly demure Mercurian before her, this woman had power. The blue haired Mercurian's aura flowed around her as fluidly as quiet stream. Rei was intrigued.

Next to the softly smiling blue haired girl was a young girl of about 10 or 11, shyly fidgeting with her long blonde hair as she peered at Rei expectedly. 'This little one must be from Venus' the Martian concluded. Once again the ebony haired princess's violet eyes sharpened taking in the young child noticing the hidden frailty the slightly sunken eyes, and the slight slump to the girl's shoulders. Rei didn't need to see the blonde haired child's flickering aura to know this girl was ill.

"I hope you don't mind, myself and Princess Ayako of Venus have been anxious to talk with the Princess of Mars" The blue haired girl said to the now blushing noble. With a deep bow the portly man exchanged parting pleasantries before disappearing into the throng of people.

"Ayako figured you needed some relief from these droll politicians and their wagging tongues" Rei turned sharply to the smiling blue haired girl her surprise barely concealed as she studied the person before her. The Mercurian had nearly perfected the Martian accent, the rougher language only slightly awkward coming from the demure looking girl.

"You speak my language well for a foreigner" Rei replied, tilting her head slightly in respect.

Ayako the young princess of Venus shyly stepped forward, "Amy likes languages, she tries to teach me but I'm not very good." The little blonde said as she glanced up at her companion.

Rei smirked as Amy chuckled patting the smaller girl's shoulder affectionately before turning to Rei with a formal bow which she returned, "I am Mizuno Ami, Princess of Mercury".

"You gave your true name" Rei trailed off questioningly.

Amy blushed slightly but met the dark haired princess squarely, "I understand that on Mars giving your true name shows a measure of trust, I hope you take mine since we will be training together."

The two princesses stood in silence gazing at each other quietly, violet eyes studying blue ones intensely before finally looking away.

"Hino Rei"

The smile that bloomed on Amy and Ayako's face startled the normally reserved Martian Princess; Rei was not used to such open friendliness that she had to look away.

After a small eternity of stillness the blue haired princess coughed and excused herself to the refreshments leaving Rei and Ayako together. The younger girl was first to speak smiling brightly up at the bewildered Martian.

"Amy is really nice you should give her a chance." The young princess said, her large crystal blue eyes imploring.

'This child has an old soul' Rei thought incredulously to herself, outwardly she smiled down at the girl assuring the younger princess she would do just as Ayako had asked.

"Why don't we go to the balcony" the stuffy ball room was becoming too much for Rei and with barely a backward glance she stiffly made her way to the open doors that lead outside.

Once outside the Martian immediately felt better, the night air was crisp and refreshing, and in the distance a familiar cawing echoed through the quiet palace grounds. Breathing a sigh of relief Rei turned finding the smaller princess leaning against the rail a look of pure joy on her young face.

"You don't get out much because of your illness?" Ayako turned so sharply that Rei was afraid she had spoken too bluntly haven just met the girl. But after a moment of stillness the younger blonde sighed heavily.

"No."

Rei frowned, silently berating herself for her insensitivity when suddenly a flutter of wings announced that they were not alone. With an almost instinctive motion the dark haired girl held out her right arm and two large raven's landed. One raven not content to remain perched there walked up to Rei's shoulder and shook out its feathers contently the other hoped from the ebony haired girl's outstretched arm onto the rail near the blonde girl.

"Phobos seems curious about you" Rei explained as the bird edged closer to the other princess blinking its intelligent eyes at the girl curiously. Phobos continued to edge closer to the shocked Venusian as if approaching a frightened animal until finally the girl stuck a tentative hand the Raven, petting it gently.

"These are your pets?" the younger girl asked

Rei smirked mischievously and reached up toward Deimos on her shoulder caressing the birds feather's gently.

"If I tried to call them that" she started a rare smile shining on the usually reserved Martian's face, "They would surely attack me in my sleep. No Phobos and Deimos are my companions."

"So they are from Mars?" the younger girl asked her attention focused on Phobos which was leaning into the girl's hand as she scratched the bird's neck.

But before Rei could answer the sound of clicking heels announced that someone had arrived, with a glance upward Rei knew that their guest was the older Princess of Venus the long blonde hair and cerulean eyes just the beginning of the two sister's similarities. Ayako had noticed the added presence also and smiled brightly at the girl who shot a disapproving glare at the younger sister.

"Ayako, you shouldn't wander off from me" the older sister demanded. Eyes the deepest color of blue locked with violet sending shocks down the spine of both girls but neither willing to be the first to break contact. Finally unable to take the intensity of the blonde girl's gaze violet eyes shifted downward meeting another set of curious clearer blue eyes; suddenly even this balcony was stifling. She had to get out, now.

Rei shifted uncomfortably on her feet, before mumbling out an excuse about being tired then quickly escaping the blue eyes that had seemed to just peer into her soul.

TBC

Thank you everyone for reading and reviewing, it means so much to me. I know this update took a while, and may seem a bit rushed in places. It sort of is, I just got done writing a monster 25 page paper and have several more to do. But all the academic writing was getting to me so I took a break- I hope you enjoy. As always questions, comments, rants and raves are welcome . I will try to respond to everyone however this time I only have time for one, I NEED SLEEP. Next time I promise

Arisela - I hope I continue to please. I love authors that write in a way where I can visualize things myself also.


	4. Chapter 3

Ch. 3

On the Eastern side of the moon palace hidden in plain sight in a wing where few people ventured was a little known hot spring. The pool itself had been walled off, incorporated into the castle design by it's original builders and if you didn't know of it's existence then you may mistaken it's door as just another room in the large palace.

The enclosure where the pool resided, like other rooms, was rich and lavishly decorated with silver and blue furnishings. The room was vast with high a ceiling and large glass door that lead out to an enclosed balcony overlooking the bay. The pool itself, constantly heated by natural means gave off steam which made the enclosure cozy, warm, and ideal on winter days. It was the moon palace's very own hot spring and by some unwritten law this luxury was only used by the Queen's senshi.

Currently the Princess of Mars painstakingly placed candles one by one at equal intervals on one side of the large pool. She thanked her lucky stars that Ami had been kind enough to share the pool's location with her. How the blue haired girl had known of the pool's where bouts the Martian could only guess, but she was fairly certain the girl's affinity toward water was the key.

It had been an intense couple of days and Rei needed some time for relaxation. She had only been on the moon four days and already she was unsure of how to face her fellow guardians. Placing the last candle down the dark haired princess quickly discarded her dressing robe and stepped into the hot soothing waters of the spring. With a sigh and a flick of her hand Rei sank into the water while the candles around her sparked to life, their glow reflecting off the pool.

The day after the ball had seen the proud Princess of Mars trailing Ami around the palace reluctantly. The blue haired princess had shown up at her door that morning with every intention on giving the Martian the grand tour. It was during their tour they met the Princess of Jupiter in the training yard.

The Jovian was like an Amazon compared to the petite Martian, nearly a head taller, a powerful build, and thick brunette hair tied in a severe ponytail. It was no wonder the taller girl had initiated a friendly match between herself and Rei. Jovian's loved sparing as much as any Martian and took any opportunity they could to test each other's ability.

By some unspoken rule the two fighters refrained from using their power focusing instead on hand to hand combat. However the friendly match ended in near catastrophe when the easily frustrated Princess of Jupiter let fly a bolt of electricity at the Martian. Rei had been lucky enough to dodge the bolt a statue behind her taking the shot instead. Too slow the Jovian Princess had realized her mistake and by that time the Martian's own temper had been aroused and in a powerful display of her training Rei sprung to the offensive. Sprinting toward the still surprised Jovian Rei quickly toppled the taller brunette before pulling back, her right arm igniting with blueish-red flame fully intent on the still stunned Jovian lying helplessly on the ground.

However before the punch could connect the two fighters were dosed in freezing cold water by the irate Princess of Mercury who unknown to them had been shouting at the two combatants to stop. Soaking wet the Princess of Mars literally steamed as the Jovian apologized profusely for her loss of control. Angry, humiliated, and with steam rising off her clothes Rei stalked back to her room heedless of the two other princesses.

If the incident itself wasn't bad enough for Rei news of the incident traveled quickly through the palace making it nearly impossible for the Martian to find solitude which led to another incident.

Rei cringed sinking deeper into the water as flashes of her day sped through her mind. It was times like these the dark haired princess cursed her clairvoyance, the future was a scary place.

For two whole days Rei had successfully avoided the other senshi, she was anxious and afraid that another confrontation would take place. The Martian wasn't afraid of confrontation itself but she vehemently didn't want to fight with her fellow senshi of whom Queen Serenity herself had asked her to get along with. So the brooding princess did what she did best, avoided the situation. However early that morning while attempting to get into the kitchen Rei was cornered.

_Rei had just sat down with a plate full of eggs when she heard the door shut quietly behind her. Cursing her preoccupation and she spun toward the sound, violet orbs met 4 pairs of concerned eyes. Before her Ami stood to the side of the Jovian Princess Makoto who was awkwardly scratching the back of her head. To her left was the older Princess of Venus whose eyes Rei refused to meet, and another blonde slightly shorter with her hair in the exact style as Queen Serenity's. _

'_This must be the Princess' _

_A tense moment passed between the five girls before the new blonde stepped forward._

"_I'm Usagi-"; the blonde princess began gently before the Martian cut her off._

"_How did you know I was here?" Rei nearly barked at the four other girls, she had been doing such a good job of avoiding them, and here they were all four advancing on her as if she were some sort of frightened animal._

"_The candles flicker when your close" a voice replied bluntly, violet eyes flicked up locking onto cerulean, boring into those blue depth before turning away a blush creeping up the Martian's features._

_She had not been in control of her emotions lately and her element reacted to her in those times, Rei silently cursed her mistake._

_It was then the Moon Princess stepped forward and placed a gentle hand on Rei's arm trying to be comforting, but as soon as she made contact it was like fire spreading across the dark haired princess's skin. Usagi was saying something, her mouth forming words but Rei could not hear them it felt like her skin was on fire and not her own, judging by the look on the blonde's face it was possible. Rei didn't think about the other girl's expression long for her vision suddenly blacked, she reached out in a futile attempt at what she had no idea. That was the last she saw before going down._

_Then the images started to take shape_

_At first they were just places like a strange sort of slide show, the garden of the moon palace, the plains of Mars, the earth, a bedroom, and the night sky with a sparkling planet in the distance. Then the images started to swirl and melt into each other each image more gruesome and heartbreaking then the last a young mother holding her crying child, war torn streets, a battlefield, and broken bodies. _

_Rei shouted for the images to stop, she wanted to see no more death, but they kept flashing heedless of her words._

_After what felt like an eternity the images slowed once again melting into a now familiar background to the dark haired girl. It was a scene she had witnessed once before. _

_Her own broken body lay in the white marble debris of the Moon Palace. All around her black fire, it was the fall of the Silver Millennium she could feel it. She watched as her vision self pulled herself up painfully, she would fight until she had no strength left Rei realized proud and mortified as she watched on. She knew that screaming would get her nowhere and trying to move closer would be impossible so the dark haired princess stood watching helplessly._

_A flash of blonde hair and a red ribbon to her right alerted her of the next agonizing moment. A senshi the Princess of Venus Rei now recognized, approached with dirt smudged blonde hair hobbling toward the struggling Mars. Venus then threw herself into the path of the determined warrior. The blonde yelled something, her face awash with tears but no matter how hard Rei strained she could not hear but her vision self could. _

_The two warriors shared a strained moment, than Mars finally took the Kogok from her neck and pressed it into the blonde's hand. It was then the blonde girl broke down, tears streaming down her face as she franticly pleaded with the senshi of fire words that Rei wanted badly to hear. She knew what would happen next, it was a scene that played in her dreams repeatedly, Mars would pull the blonde into a tight embrace, her mouth moving words into her partner's ear no doubt whispering into them, then she would kiss the blonde senshi tenderly on the forehead before pushing her aside and running full on into a battle Rei had only just taken notice of. _

_Rei wanted to close her eyes, to turn her head at what would happen next but she found herself unable to stop the vision from playing out. She watched with growing anxiety as her vision self seemed to ignite with the flames of Mars, her whole body consumed. Rei knew it was a last ditch effort, she was buying time for something. The hordes where too great and she knew it, but Mars kept running full speed the flames growing in intensity with every step she took until they overtook not only her but everything remotely close to her. _

_She had died fighting for Princess Serenity, the moon kingdom, her Queen, and the last person she saw before that death was the Princess of Venus. _

_The vision ended there the last time but this time the image blurred revealing a white room and a woman in a bed. She had strange boxes around her flashing different colors and translucent tubes running from her arm to the box. Next to her was a small dark haired child that looked exactly as Rei had when she was five. Startled the princess of Mars realized the little girl was her. _

'_Another life?'_

_Images blurred and melted together once again at a dizzying speed. She made out black birds, a large gate of some sort, and an image of herself older this time about 14 or 15 sweeping a set of stone steps, and someone calling her name. The sound became louder and louder until finally the images faded from her vision, only to be replaced with the picture of four very worried faces._

Wet ebony hair clung to the Martian's back as she pulled out of the pool just enough to rest her folded arms on the pool's edge, her violet eyes staring intently into the flame of the nearest candle.

"I've seen my death" she murmured to the tiny flame. She had known of it since the time she was fifteen and her clairvoyant powers realized. For the same reason she had been given the Kogok which she now wore, but seeing the image of her death again had shaken the usually reserved girl. The blonde girl with the red bow was Venus; she had realized it that first night at the ball but had denied it until now. She could deny the identity of the blonde from her vision no more, it was in fact Venus.

What did this all mean? Was there some fated relationship between herself and Venus? Was it just deep friendship? If it's simply friendship then why the kiss, why the Kogok, and why does her heart pump painfully in her chest whenever the blonde is around? And what were those new images?

With a sigh the forlorn princess let her head drop to the cool stone floor, why had she been given this power?

The sound of a door shutting alerted Rei that she was once again not alone, 'Why won't they leave me be?' a pained expression on the Martian's face as she glanced up. Two bright cerulean eyes stared back at her; unprepared Rei sputtered quickly turning her back on the girl and nearly losing her footing in the pool.

"How are you feeling?" a soft voice called into the room, a peace branch.

"How did you know I was here, the candles aren't flickering in the hall"

A splash echoed in the room signaling the other girl had gotten into the water causing the stiff Martian to turn her back fully to the girl. Rei's heart sped up and the sound reverberated loudly in her own ears along with a slight chuckle.

"Amy told me you might be here." Came the reply the blonde girl's voice soft and lazy, no doubt the hot water's doing.

Silence settled between the two girls like a mist, Rei had never been good at conversations and most people left her alone when she was short with them. But for some reason Rei wanted to try with the Venusian, maybe it was the vision, maybe it was that the girl had sought her out the anxious Martian had no idea.

"Do- do you have a red hair ribbon?" The Rei finally blurted her back still turned to the blonde.

"No I don't think I do" came the melodious reply followed by more silence.

Rei closed her eyes in frustration, mentally beating herself for asking such a strange question. So absorbed she was in berating herself that Rei didn't hear the soft slosh of the water behind her. But the brush of fingers on her back caused all thoughts to stop in the dark haired princess mind.

The touch was light, airy almost tentative at first and Rei was shocked into complete stillness. After a few moments the touch became bolder finally brushing the thick mane of ebony hair onto the now delicately shaking Martian. Rei could not think only feel as a gentle finger traced the Tomoe tattoo on her shoulder then move toward her spine and then toward the opposite shoulder.

"Why does it seem to glow?"

The quiet question broke through the trance Venus's touch had caused shattering the dam of thought in Rei's mind.

'The candles! She can see it' Rei thought her eyes wide and her face red from not only the heat of the water. Slamming the door shut on her emotions Rei once again adopted a mask of detachment as she push her hair back in place covering the phoenix tattoo on her back.

"I've got to go" Cool violet briefly met confused blue before tearing away. The Martian's mask never slipped as she rose out of the pool and pulled her dressing robe on. It was impossible to tell that in fact a storm was emotion was raging within the stoic girl as she calmly walked toward the door only pausing to extinguish the many candles with a flick of her wrist before exiting.

* * *

heatqueen - Thank you, I hope you continue reading.

trusuprise - Thank you, I hope this chapter lives up to the bar I've set. I've always been interested in Rei's character and the fact that I've felt she had so much more bubbling under the surface. I'm attempting to show that, but i'm finding it much harder then i originally thought it would be.

LunarMiko07 - Haha, yeah the fated meeting which sparked an epic love story of the ages, do I sound like a bad movie promo? I'm glad you enjoyed the chapter.

Thank you all for reading, this chapter was very difficult on me and I hope I did ok. I'm aware it may seem a bit choppy in some parts, and I may go back and re-write it if it starts to really bother me. This chapter was really about Rei internalizing so you don't see phobos and deimos or Ayako but no worries they will make an appearance later. Again thank you for reading and any comments, rants, raves are always welcome.


	5. Chapter 4

Ch 4

_Cold air blew over the mountain top in strong gusts, a lone dark haired girl stood leaning into the wind on the very pinnacle of the red rock staring out over what she had climbed. Rei could almost feel the icy embrace of the winds surrounding her once again as she allowed the vision memory to fully take hold over her. _

_Straightening her shoulders the dark haired princess stretched her hands skyward, baring her shoulders and arms to the frigid air before letting loose as mighty a cry as loud as she could muster. Rei shouted as loud and as long as she could, until her lungs burned and her throat grew raw. She shouted for her lost childhood and the loneliness she always felt, she shouted for her joy at her achievements, she shouted for the turning toward adulthood, she shouted because she could. _

_Like her older brother and sister before her the youngest princess of the Martian Royal family climbed the Olympus Mons, the tallest mountain in the solar system, on the completion of her training. The young princess had received her first tattoo a week before signifying that she was not only was a full member of the village but a master in the art of the War God himself, hand to hand combat. _

_Small puffs of breath condensate before Rei's eyes, she should begin the trek down before height sickness takes her over, 'Just a bit longer'. She was finally on her path once she made it back to the village her second tattoo would be given, the symbol of her status as avatar of fire. The elders had been preparing a special ink just for Rei and her older siblings had been invited to the ceremony. _

_Rei let out a stream of warm air and began pulling her traveling cloak around her shoulders once more. Her father, the strong leader of Mars was ill. He had been growing weaker for years, and his sickness made it so he was confined to the Phobos-Deimos Castle. Of course the Martian people didn't know of their leader's weakness and assumed that the elder royal siblings were merely doing their duty. _

_Shun the Crown Prince was 25 and it was expected that he begin taking on more responsibilities. He like his father before him and chosen to enter the Martian military where he excelled in sword fighting, Shun's current position as a Blood Knight Commander was hard earned and he was proud of the title. Likewise Ryoko the eldest daughter at 20 had become a Ranger at the tender age of 13 and her cunning and skill, well talked about on Mars, had won her the rank of Ranger Lord. Ryoko, as part of her duty as a Ranger Lord acted as an emissary for the crown, her grace, pleasant nature and feral beauty made her the perfect representative of Mars. Then there was little Rei, 15 and had just received her mark of the War God. She was the living symbol of fire to her people and at large celebrations was charged with the task of lighting the sacred fire. In a year she would have her coming of age ceremony and then she too would begin taking on the responsibilities of her station_.

_But first thing was first, she had to get off this mountain. The climb down was slow and tedious and if the Ebony haired girl miss-calculated her footing she would plummet to her death. Half way down the mountain the air around her became hazy a tell tale sign that her vision memory was shifting._

_Curious violet eyes stared off into the distance where two grey figures seemed to materialize out of the fog. As the two figures came closer the young princess gasped as recognition coursed through her. Her brother Shun walked toward her, his barreled chest hidden behind onyx plate armor. On his face was an easy smile which caused the lines and tattoos on the left side of his face to smooth and seem less threatening. Next to him, nearly a head shorter was her sister Ryoko dressed in her finest Ranger outfit. Her leather armor was also onyx as was the long bow slung over her back as always she appeared to walk with cat-like grace in comparison to the muscled bulk of their brother Shun. Ryoko's piercing red eyes drew in Rei with their warmth until the haze began to lift. _

"_Rei-sama !"_

_The haze as well as the red rock of Mars began to grow transparent as feeling began to flood Rei's senses, the cool stone floor beneath her, the warmth of the fire before her, and the heaviness of her robes on her skin._

"_Rei-sama!"_

_She could feel her fingers now, flexing the knuckles popping._

"_Rei-sama!"_

Finally the veil of the vision memory lifted and clear violet eyes took in the ebony and ruby furnishings of her room.

"Rei-sama, the Senshi Appointing Ceremony will begin shortly, you must hurry"

A frantic servant stood somewhere behind the Martian princess, no doubt scared to come any further into the room. With a nod of her head Rei slowly stood and shook the wrinkles from her priestess robes.

"Are my brother and sister in the throne room already?" Rei asked curiously.

"How did- Y-yes Rei-sama."

The ebony haired girl glanced quickly in the mirror, checking that the warrior markings on her face were still there and not blown away by the winds of her vision. With a satisfied nod and one lance look over to see that she looked both wild and refined as a Priestess of Mars should Rei followed the mystified servant toward the throne room.

* * *

The day before the a Appointing Ceremony all the princesses were summoned to the moon kingdom's tailor where a rather strict black cat announced that they would all be fitted for special royal robes of their planet's royal colors. All the families of the princesses would be wearing their royal garments accordingly the cat announced. When Rei replied she would not need a fitting she could almost see the little black cat bristle.

"_Its tradition" the cat had insisted._

"_Did Queen Serenity herself order us to wear royal attire?" the Martian calmly asked._

"_Well, not in- Its tradition that at the anointing ceremony the royals be in their royal attire" The small cat was getting angry now, her voice climbing a whole octave._

_Violet eyes leveled themselves on the cat before her coolly, and in a slow even voice carefully keeping out the growing Martian's aggravation she replied, "Moon tradition is not my tradition, unless I am personally ordered by Queen Serenity herself I will not wear your idea of royal attire." _

"_Touché"_

_Rei's attention snapped to the right directly at the smirking Princess of Venus herself. With a slight frown and a glance toward the obviously fuming Moon Advisor the ebony haired princess mumbled a Martian curse, pivoted on the heel of her feet, and marched out of the room._

* * *

The throne room was decorated with white flowers and hundreds of guest filled the already large room to nearly bursting. The other Senshi candidates stood next to their families dressed in similar royal attire and behind them a black cat scowled at the two Martians dressed as if prepared for war and not a peaceful ceremony. Rei like her siblings choose to wear the clothes of their station, as was the tradition on Mars.

Rei's face had two large black lines painted on starting at her hair line, traveling over her eyes, straight down to her jaw line giving her a feral look. Her hair hung loose and wild about her shoulders, as black as the robes she wore. Her ceremonial priestess robes worn only at special occasions were not as colorful as her other outfits this robe was black with blood red lining and stitching. The robe itself was a piece of art not unlike the onyx plate armor of her brother and her sister's leather ranger armor. The embroiderer had painstakingly stitched the symbol of the Avatar of Mars, a rising phoenix, on the back of the robe in white thread that shimmered in the light.

The symbol itself had plagued the dark haired princess since she first dreamt of her demise, how fitting that her symbol would be a phoenix whose fated death was in flames.

Rei pulled her attention from her brooding thoughts as she met her siblings on the platform where all the royals stood waiting for Queen Serenity. Her brother had never looked so proud as he stood like dark statue in hall of silver. She knew her siblings would show her no outward affection but their eyes spoke volumes to her, they were proud and honored to be here. Biting back a swell of emotion Rei twisted her hands in front of her chest and bowed formally to her older siblings.

As the youngest Martian's bare feet took the stage, smirking devilishly at the scowling Luna, she realized today would be the first day she took up her responsibly as the Avatar of Mars.

Throughout the ceremony Rei felt the pressure of bright cerulean eyes on her but she refused to return the attention instead she stood proudly next to her siblings and dutifully listened to Queen Serenity make her speech.

The amount of power surging in the room made the youngest Martian's head swim. With the bestowing of each planetary crystal the swell of power as the crystals found their new homes made Rei's head ache in response.

So focused was she on breathing and staying centered that Rei nearly missed her turn, the heavy steps of Shun's plate covered boots snapped her to attention. The three Martian siblings took their place at the foot of the empirical throne where Queen Serenity stood like a silver goddess.

As one the three siblings bowed low to the Queen Shun's hands clasped palm over fist in front of his chest as he began to speak his eyes averted.

"Silver Queen Serenity I am Mars Shun, Crown Prince and High Commander of the Blood Knights or Mars. Today, on behalf of my planet I am honored to continue the tradition of the Silver Millennium by presenting one of my own blood to the station of Senshi, Mars Rei."

At the mention of her name Rei lifted her eyes to the Queen whose aura had mesmerized and calmed her before, the pounding in her head forgotten as violet orbs met kind silver ones.

"Mars Rei would you stand"

Rei's eyes were drawn immediately to a dark ruby in the Queen's hand; it seemed to pulse with life only intensifying as the dark princess grew near. Rei knew her part well in this ceremony and immediately pulled her fist over her chest and twisted it over her heart as she bent her knees in a half bow.

" I Mars Rei swear by my life, my honor, and my planet to protect the people of this empire from those who would harm it. My blood is yours."

A gentle smile graced the features of the monarch before her, satisfied with the Martian oath and with that same quiet voice that somehow echoed through the hall with its power Queen Serenity formally accepted and gently lifted the red crystal to Rei's chest. The crystal then burst with red light as it seeped into the Martian princesses' trembling form.

The Martian gasped her knees buckling before she caught herself, it felt like her veins were singing with fire as the new power inside her spread itself through her entire being. Rei stood slowly blinking as the power settled in her chest and her nerves calming to a hum.

Wonder lit her amethyst eyes as her hand settled over the place the crystal rested in her chest; she could feel every flame in the entire castle.

After the ceremony Rei was not surprised to learn her siblings had to leave at once. Her brother Shun had arranged for a proper tattoo artist to visit the Martian on the moon, it was important that she have her newly acquired station properly displayed. She had gained the rank of warrior. Her sister Ryoko however stayed behind an in a secluded balcony they shared a sisterly embrace.

"My little Reiko, grown so big" the older princess doted, running a hand affectionately along the sleeve of Rei's robe.

"Ryoko, I've grown out of that pet name." In the distance twin cawing sounded, alerting the arrival of Phobos and Deimos.

"You'll always be my younger sister, no matter who you become" Ryoko squeezed Rei's hand briefly before turning toward the arrival of two large ravens.

Ryoko fondly ran her fingers down the backs of both birds before turning toward her sister once again.

"I left you a present in your room, I must leave now"

Rei watched silently as her sister left the balcony to go back to her life on Mars while Rei was left in this foreign planet with these strange people. The ebony haired princess turned toward her guardians, absentmindedly holding her fingers for them to rub their beaks against. Her sister Ryoko had always been affectionate and caring toward Rei but their time together had always been brief, so the youngest princess savored their meetings.

With a small sigh Rei pulled her mask of indifference on once again and turned back toward the throne room the light from the earth casting shadows on her footsteps.

As she rounded the corner from the balcony a figure slid up next to her, matching her step for step. Instantly Rei stiffened, it wasn't enough for the Venusian to haunt her dreams but she had taken to haunting her waking steps as well.

"Why don't you wear the Lunarian royalty attire like the rest of us? We're a unit, our strength is in solidarity"

A dark frown etched its way onto the Martian's face as she stopped and turned toward the blond next to her.

"I don't agree in uniforms with different colors to tell people apart."

The rough Martian accent made its way into Rei's speech causing her words to sound as feral and wild as she looked.

"Our duty is to be a unit"

The blond leveled her bright blue gaze on the Martian daring Rei to deny her.

"Our duty is not to bully each other into conformity"

Rei countered lifting her chin slightly.

The two princesses shared a tense moment both on edge like to fighters waiting for the first move. Finally the blond haired Venusian blew out a quiet breath, diffusing the tense atmosphere.

"Why do you fight me?"

Blue eyes looked everywhere but at Rei's own violet ones.

"Why do you chase me?"

The Martian countered once again the question hanging in the air between them. Rei's palms were slick with sweat and her breathing was shallow, the dark princess had brooded for many nights over her response to the blond, but the fire offered no suggestions. The only other answer caused the Martian Princess to blush and push the idea out of her mind. There was no way.

"You can't answer a question with a question!"

Rei glanced up at the blond in front of her, pulled from her musings by the outburst. The Venusian Princess Minako had a stubborn tilt to her chin and her eyes glared intensely at the brunette before her. Rei had seen this look before, the stubborn almost willful look in those large blue eyes. She had seen them in dreams of fire and blood, a future whose possibility she didn't want to think about. It was too much.

Rei turned from the agitated princess at her side, quickly side stepping a darting hand attempting to keep her from running. But the Martian couldn't help one last parting shot.

" Can't I, Princess Minako?"

* * *

This chapter was rough on me. I had originally planned it to be much different and with alot more interaction between Minako and Rei. I didn't like how it flowed so you get this wonderful clipped conversation at the end of the chapter. Speaking of end, its the end of the semester and i am nearly done with my first semester at graduate school. Yay!

Again I hope you all enjoyed reading, comments, concerns, rants, feedback in general is always welcome.

LunarMiko07- I like Rei being able to see her future self also. I think it makes her all the more interesting.

ShoujoGirl- Ah fanart, well if anyone wants to draw any I'll be happy to include them. However my own hapless scratching are not making it up here. Lol

Heatqueen- Thank you, I hope you continue reading and that I continue to please.

Trusuprise- I think Rei is a little confused herself about if her attraction to Minako is due to her visions or her own attraction. As for choppiness.. haha.. I did it again.

As for Rei's end, I guess you'll just have to see if she changes it, has the ability to change it, and if it changes at all. Do you like that completely ambiguous answer? I do .

Rikku's twin- Wow the caps make me feel warm and fuzzy inside as if you had to shout out how much you liked it. Thank you very much and I hope you continue reading.

* * *


	6. Chapter 5

The constant light cast by the earth shone through tightly drawn curtains causing the room to be bathed in a red glow. The ebony fireplace contained a roaring fire which kept the room cozy but not too hot. In the center of the room on the large bed a girl no older then seventeen lay staring up at the ceiling. Her wide amethyst eyes winced every minute or so.

She could feel the warmth of the Mars crystal in her chest its power still adjusting itself to her body. The girl somehow knew it would take a while for her to adjust to this new level of power, but the knowledge made the transition no easier. She couldn't sleep, she could feel every flame in the palace, but that wasn't what kept her eyes from closing in slumber.

In the room next to her behind large golden doors emblazed with the symbol of Venus, Rei could sense the presence of dozens of small candles their small lives a soft comfort to the drowsy Martian. But one particular candle no more then 20 feet from her, parted by white marble walls, would spark to life then no more then a minute later would be extinguished. This constant on and off had kept the Martian up for the last 2 hours and she had just about had enough.

How could she be expected to sleep like this? The constant flare to life followed by the cold hollowness of extinction was playing havoc on the Martian's heightened senses. What was the blond doing?

With a low growl Rei made her way to her bedroom wall, gingerly placing her hands on the cold stone. She had to be extra careful she was still unable to fully control her newly gained power; the various puddles of wax in the adjacent room were proof. And the Martian didn't want to hurt the infuriating blond just shock her a bit, hopefully enough to stop torturing the flame.

Rei shut her eyes in concentration, focusing only on the single small flame which had been the source of her sleeplessness. She could feel it flickering; if she added just the smallest amount of power to it Rei knew the candle would fare up and melt all the way down. But before she could apply the needed power, it went out. Again.

It hadn't even been a minute yet!

Amethyst eyes shot open, irritation causing her eyebrow to twitch. With a grunt of pure frustration the Princess of Mars smacked her palm against the wall, causing every candle in the wing to suddenly go out.

* * *

Roughly five hours later found the Princess of Mars standing in an archery lane next to the training yard. She was dressed comfortably, her wrist protected by leather bracers which matched the dark fabric of her sleeveless shirt and fitted pants. Her hair was tied back, confined into a rare ponytail. The only noticeable sign of the dark Princess's sleepless night were here red rimmed eyes.

The target before her was pot marked with holes, testimony of the time Rei had spent in the archery lane. The long bow she held was the color of a flaming sunset and coincidentally enough the rising phoenix on her back. This bow was the gift left to Rei by her older sister, a gift from one warrior to another.

Archery required calmness and a centering of oneself which had always been attractive to the dark haired loner. When she was younger she had spent many long hours practicing the art even though it wasn't part of her training regime. And now with her powers attempting to find equilibrium once again Rei found the activity helpful for focusing herself.

In archery, Rei's world was confined to the arrow shaft and the target, little else existed. Even those constant thoughts about the training she would receive as a senshi, the concerns about being in a new place and the thoughts of home seem to lazily drift through the Martian's conscious.

But even in this sacred activity the blond haunted Rei.

Thunk. Another bulls-eye.

That damnable Venusian was like a shadow glued to Rei's steps. Every time the blond got close all the ebony haired Martian could see, were her dreams and memories of what the fire had shown her.

Thunk. Bulls-eye.

Even when Rei was around the Venusian and not thinking about her dreams, all she could focus on was the sway of Minako's hips or the way her hair caught the light. Or the fact that ever since she made the comment about the red bow the infuriating girl had worn a red bow in her hair.

Thunk. Bulls-eye.

Rei frowned at the target, it was littered with arrows. The ebony haired Martian reached back toward her shoulder and felt for how many arrows she had left, three. After a moment of contemplation the dark princess unstrung her long bow and put it away.

With a wild grin spread across the usually stoic face Rei purposefully reached out her hands, careful to reign in the unbalanced power within her. Beads of sweat began to form on her brow as she slowly drew her left hand into a fist. As her hand closed a bow of flame burst from her fist and Rei raised it toward her target. Her right hand pulled back from her left and a flaming arrow was born; sweat trickling down her face from the train of keeping the unstable power in check. And every couple of seconds the arrow would flare slightly threatening to flame out of control.

This use to be easier, before she received the Mars Crystal, but the new power was still adjusting to her body and spirit, and Rei had a sneaking suspicion it was also adjusting to her soul.

She was grateful for her rigorous training on Mars because just forming the bow and arrow had taken a massive amount of control. Rei knew she wouldn't be able to hold it for more then a couple minutes. But she would hold on to her shaking control for as long as she could.

The Martian Princess's breaths were labored, and sweat dripped steadily off her chin but she stood silently with her fiery arrow pointed toward the target. With her muscles screaming for release Rei finally let the arrow fly, and with amazing speed it zoomed toward the target instantly incinerating the wood upon impact.

Rei let a soft sigh escape as unreadable eyes watched the wooden target turn to ash. The Martian always got a quiet thrill after utterly destroying something. It was a darkness that laid at the edge of her conscious; she was used to keeping it there.

"Your not suppose to destroy the practice yard, you know"

The tired princess instantly stiffened, it looks like the sun had come out for her shadow had returned.

"A practice yard is useless if I can't practice properly"

Rei kept her eyes glued on the ashes of the target as she wiped her face.

"I guess we will have to find targets that don't easily burn"

The Martian chanced a glance over her shoulder catching the blond haired girl's gaze focused a little lower then it should have been. Rei quickly averted her gaze she didn't want the blond to know she had been caught, or so she told herself. Being around the usually charismatic Venusian made the dark princess pull in on herself, and hide behind a wall of indifference, despite wanting to laugh and talk freely with the blond. It seemed, to the reserved Martian, that her reaction was impossible to overcome and the ebony haired Martian didn't want to delve into the reasons why.

" I'm sure the servants would jump at the chance to serve Mars-sama" Rei couldn't see the blonds' face and something in her voice made the Martian pause.

" Why do you say that?"

"It seems half the palace is enamored with you while the other half fears you"

Rei could hear the smirk in the Venusian's voice but chose not to rise to her bait. Instead she kept her eyes centered ahead of her as a silence fell over the two girls. For her part Mars was using every ounce of control she had left to keep herself from fidgeting.

The awkward pauses gnawed at Rei until finally, the Martian turned and regarded her blond companion for a few quiet moments, inwardly she marveled at how her heart sped up at the mere sight of the other Princess.

"Don't light and relight the same candle for hours."

Shock bloomed over the other girls face but was quickly hidden under another unreadable emotion.

"That was you, wasn't it?" the blond demanded.

"I don't know what you're talking about" Rei sniffed, feigning ignorance.

" The candles! Last night every candle in my room and up and down the hall went out and couldn't be relit. That was you, wasn't it?"

Rei frowned at the girl in front of her. She wasn't sure why she was acting this way and it baffled the Martian, normally she would simply take responsibility. But now she wanted to confess what she had done to the blonde, it was wrong and she knew it.

The Martian's frown deepened, where had that last thought come from? She had done nothing wrong. Realization sparked and Rei's eyes met the imploring cerulean in front of her. The compulsion to confess to the blond rose up in the Martians throat once again as their eyes met, and now Rei knew for sure what the Venusians gift was.

"Get out of my head" Rei ground out, her eyes blazing.

The Venusian for her part jumped slightly as if coming out of a daze. Instantly the feeling left Rei and the Venusian in front of her had the decency to look guilty.

"I'm sorry"

The agitation the Martian felt vanished like smoke under the Venusian's guilty gaze. A flower of compassion bloomed inside Rei's chest for the blond.

"It's difficult to control since you received the crystal, isn't it?" Rei offered gently.

"How did– the candles!" A little smirk tugged at the corner of the blonds' mouth as she instantly grew more confident under the warm gaze of the Martian.

" I heard you put out every light in the wing" the blond smiled approvingly.

"Fire is my element after all, Princess"

" Mine is love", the Venusian offered proudly

Rei stopped, confusion lighting her face, love wasn't an element. It was well known that the element of Venus was metal. But when she voiced her thoughts the blonds' face flushed in anger and Rei's face flushed for a completely different reason.

* * *

The blue haired princess of Mercury sat down gracefully on a patch of grass next to the sulking Martian. A soft smile graced her features as she gently laid a hand on the Martian's arm.

"Let me see your face Rei"

Rei merely turned away, using the curtain of her dark hair as cover.

" I'm a trained healer"

When the dark haired princess turned further away Ami tried a different tactic.

" Rei, won't you let a friend see your face?" , at this the Martian sighed a soft curse and allowed the Mercurian to have a peek.

There was an angry red hand mark on the left side of the Martian's face which had caused Rei's face to swell slightly.

"That was quite a hit" the blue haired Princess commented her fingers trailing along the swollen skin.

Rei trained her eyes forward, watching the movement of two fighters sparing, her steely silence communicating just how upset she was.

"You should be careful not to arouse her anger; you know she is the commander after all. We are destined to follow her."

"She should be careful not to arouse my anger!"

Angry amethyst met cool aqua , "In reality they should be careful not to arouse our anger" the Martian corrected.

Rei scowled in response and sniffed in indignation, " I know the legend Ami."

"I've seen what they don't tell. I know the first Senshi of Mercury was known as the Black Warrior of the North" The Martian nearly barked. "I know how Venus was the first guardian planet but don't forget that the first senshi came to Mars because of our vision, then to Mercury for their logic, and lastly to Jupiter for their strength. And that person–"

The Martian roughly thrust her finger toward the Venusian in question which was in a friendly sparing match with the Princess of Jupiter. The Martian's eyes paused briefly to watch the form of the blond as she dodged the Jovian's attack expertly before shaking the image from her vision.

"That person " Rei continued, "thinks love is an element!" the Martian concluded in a scandalized whisper.

" The inner planets make up the four guardian gods, we all know this. We are taught the story from birth. Mercury with all its knowledge and logic flows with the ancient power of water, able to be calm and deep like a river or angry and powerful like a tidal wave. Venus the brightest planet due to its reflective clouds reflects the condition of the heart with the strength of metal. Mars as unpredictable and fierce as the fire it was born from burns with spiritual power. And lastly Jupiter as grounded, steady, yet ever changing as the wood that so populated their planet. I know the story Ami, and love is not one of those elements" The Martian concluded with a huff.

"What does she expect to do? Throw hearts at our enemies with her love power and cause them to orgasm to death?"

Ami's amused smile turned into full on laughter at the Martian's outburst and she attempted to put a calming hand on the upset Martian. At Ami's laughter Rei bristled even more resembling a disturbed cat.

"This is serious, her element is metal!" Rei bit out in a weak attempt to stop the Mercurian's laughter.

Before Ami could answer a clear voice echoed through the practice yard, cutting through the easy atmosphere. Four pairs of eyes turned toward the sound of the voice to see a small black cat standing importantly at the entrance of the practice yard.

"Good, everyone is here. I take it you girls have noticed a change in your powers since receiving your planetary crystals."

All activity stopped and the four fledgling planetary guardians made their way to Luna. The ebony haired Martian trailed a bit behind Ami allowing the smaller Princess to pull her along by the wrist. The act didn't go by unnoticed by the Venusian and the Jovian who looked on with jealous eyes.

The Lunarian advisor gave a brief speech on how the changes were normal and that the planetary crystals were acclimating to the new senshi. Their senshi training would begin the following week.

" Princess Rei" The Lunarian started, her eyes barely concealing her contempt.

"Advisor" the Martian answered matching the cat's cold tone. She made no attempt to hide her dislike for the lunarian advisor and ignored the cat as much as possible.

" As you know your training will be slightly different due to your unique talent-"

"Martian Clairvoyance is rarely considered a talent Advisor Luna, it's a highly sought after gift." Ami cut in much to the advisor's obvious resentment. The flustered advisor couldn't argue with the calculated words of a Princess of Mercury whose genius was considered a prodigy even on her own planet.

The cat bowed stiffly and continued with a forced cough, "Yes, well Princess Rei you are to meet with the Time Guardian after lunch for your instruction. Queen Serenity's orders" the advisor quickly added.

The Martian nodded her head in acknowledgement, she had already suspected this to happen since the green haired woman had been present the first time she met Queen Serenity. Rei didn't hear the rest of the advisor's words as she pondered her meeting with the Time Guardian. Unknown to her a pair of cerulean eyes had been watching her very closely.

* * *

Again thank you for reading, i'm sorry this update took a bit longer to put out. I have been caught up in the holidays, but I will try to not be as long with the next update. Also I had originally wanted the dialogue to go a bit differently but I like this version better. I hope everyone has a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Years. Again all comments, concerns, rants, and complaints can be directed right here.

Rikku's twin- Thank you very much and your right caps really are the icing on the cake. lol

heatqueen- Thank you, i hope you continue to read

trusuprise- You might be able to tell but I really despise that cat. Speaking of haunting, during PGSM I got the feeling of Minako being almost like a ghost in the sense that she almost seemed to haunt the other senshi by always being in the background. Maybe it's just my feeling. And yes ambiguity is great isn't it? I love it ! Without it subtext wouldn't be as fun.

DavisJes- I enjoyed how you left a comment after each chapter. Thank you for reading.

LunarMiko07- I think answering a question with a question is just awesome anyway, it usually makes the other person very flustered. I suggest everyone do it. lol 


	7. Chapter 6

The perpetual glow from the earth shone in the early morning hours of the moon. A careful silence had fallen over the solemn valleys and rolling hills which did nothing to still the running dialogue of thought and image in the dark haired girl's mind. She had spent the better part of the morning digging a large circular trench. To some the actions of the Princess of Mars would seem foolish but to Rei foolishness would be to continue on doing nothing.

Far off memories of snow and the peak of Olympus Mons weaved their way into the young princess mind reminding her for the underlying reason for her trek. Faces of children flashed through her mind's eye, contorted, and writhing in pain. Her station would not allow her to ignore these images and neither would her heart. Her duty demanded action, but more importantly her soul demanded answers.

_The meeting with the Guardian of Time had been as perplexing as the Martian had expected. Technically the Time Guardian didn't even exist to the general populace. Her station was whispered of behind closed doors, parents telling stories of a hauntingly beautiful woman with the power to stop time, but who was forever chained to the gate of time to watch the lives of others. So it was strange to Rei that Luna would speak almost casually of the existence of the Time Guardian. There was still so much the young Martian Princess had to learn of these strange people of the moon and their ways._

_The Time Guardian had long green hair which by itself wasn't unique but the dark skin color of the Time Guardian made Rei stop. Most people of the Silver Millennium were fair or light skinned, dark skin or mocha colored skin was unique and not as common. The reason for this was only certain Earth people and Plutarians' possessed this unique trait. _

_The Time Guardian, Rei observed, held herself regally as a royal would and her dark skin clued the Martian to the woman's ethnicity. But the proud lonely look in the other woman's eye caused an image to flash across Rei's mind, an image of a broken princess mourning the loss of her people and family. The image caused the Martian's gaze to sharpen on the haunted features of the Time Guardian._

A sharp cry pulled Rei from her musing; she recognized the familiar sound and turned her eyes toward the outside of the trench. No matter how many times she witnessed the transformation Rei never tired of watching.

Phobos and Deimos were standing just outside ruffling their feathers as was tradition before their cries became sharper and more feral. Their bodies followed suit, twisting and changing, wings stretching out to form arms, back arching and elongating, legs unfurling; the beaks receding into a human face and the mass of black feathers morphed into long lustrous black hair. Finally two impossibly beautiful women with a slight other worldly appearance dressed as Martian warriors stood in the place of the two ravens

Rei stood then and formally bowed to the two women, recognizing them and their duty to her. In response two identical blushes spread across both Phobos and Deimos face, but their expression remained sober as they returned the bow in unison. Rei then took her pack, unrolled a small blanket, placed a water skin and bread on it, and placed her pack outside of the trench. Next the dark haired princess took her traveling cloak off, revealing loose black pants and a white shirt which exposed her entire back.

The skin of Rei's back was smooth and in the light of the earth only the black symbol of the war god showed. "But as are many things" Rei thought darkly to her self, "What we see with our physical eyes may not be entirely true"

_The Marian princess had expected vague and cryptic talk drowning in double meanings in her meeting with the Time Guardian, and she got plenty. But the history lesson she had received was chilling and left Rei with this new found mission, a mission for answers. The green haired Guardian of Time had opted to tell the young Marian a story._

_The story of the end of the first planetary avatars was a tale with many details left out. The version Rei had always been taught as a child told of an epic battle in which both Mars and Mercury fell saving the remaining senshi. The sacrifices of the two elemental fighters had given Venus and Jupiter the leverage they needed to win. However the loss was so great that the remaining two senshi went into mourning never to fight again._

_However according to the Time Guardian the real story of the end of the first avatars was vastly different. The original Mercury went crazy with knowledge; her search for knowledge flooded her sense of reason until all that was left was an all consuming hunger for more. All that knowledge turned the gentle Mercurian cynical and cold, filled with rage at the failures of the human race. The other senshi in response turned a blind eye to the unassuming genius steady decline down the spiraling staircase of madness. Their choice had severe consequences for not just them but the kingdom._

_One day in a fit of paranoid rage the Warrior of Water, knowledge and reason became the figure known as the Black Warrior of the North. She unleashed a terrible inner darkness which destroyed the surface of the planet of Pluto and its entire population. A feat that until that time only the mythical sleeping avatar of Saturn was thought to achieve. How the Mercurian got to the planet and what how she was able to channel all that power was still a mystery. _

_Yoruno Miyabi, the Avatar of Mars at that time called Ju-Jak the phoenix and appealed to the fickle elemental god in response. As a result was Miyabi was able to lock the darkness back inside Mercury before any other planets shared the same fate, but at the cost of her own sanity. It was a horrible price to pay. When Mercury came out of her paranoid rage and realized the horror she had committed, the Avatar of Water took her own life. Venus blamed herself for the events and went into seclusion while Jupiter went into a deep mourning and was never heard from again. _

_As the story came to its close Rei sat in stunned silence trying to process all she had heard. Thousands of questions ran through the Martian's mind some as fleeting as her breath on a cold wind. Why would the Time Guardian reveal this story, what good would come of knowing this history? Was this some sort of test where Rei had to divine the answer? Seeming of their own accord amethyst eyes found the ever watchful crimson and the answer came like a spark igniting in a dark room._

"_You too have seen the coming darkness" It was a statement and not a question which elicited a slight stiff nod from the Green haired Keeper of Time. _

"_What have you seen?"_

"_I can not tell you when or the how only confirm that it will come." She sighed, physically deflating and suddenly looking far older._

"_Then it is up to my sight to see what I can" Rei clutched the Kogok around her neck tightly her knuckles turning a striking white against the darkness of her shirt. _

Rei scowled up at the earth, its gentle blue light agitating and mocking her with its detached vision. For a moment the dark haired princess let her eyes to close allowing the weight of her anxiety to rest fully on her shoulders and press on her chest. The visions of a blood drenched future, a lonely next life, the haunting knowledge of past incidence, and even the anxiety of budding romantic feelings pushed at Rei's conscious.

The proud Princess of Mars let out a breath she didn't realized she was holding until it escaped her in a gush and pulled her shoulders down with its force. Rei's face fell in time with the sagging of her shoulders and she looked up toward the softly glowing Earth in the afternoon sky. It didn't care that she hadn't slept well since the day she had seen the images of war and death. It didn't care that she had worried about the fate of her people and even her own life. It didn't care that the visions the Princess of Mars were true and the end of an age would occur soon. And it definitely didn't care that since she first stepped foot on the Moon every other thought she had centered on a certain blonde.

The ebony haired Martian looked around, tired amethyst eyes taking in the trench dug in a perfect circle, isolating her. Agitation melting into melancholy with the realization of exactly what it was she was about to attempt, finally, settling on her. Calling the Elemental god of fire Ju-Jak was dangerous and no one came away unscathed. Rei doubted her fellow avatars would fully understand the sacrifice she would make today.

With a slight motion of her hand she urged the two women on the outside of the trench forward.

"If I'm claimed," Rei started, her voice faltering slightly, " If my life is claimed, report to Queen Serenity all you've seen and all I've told you."

Deimos took a step forward, worry lining her face only to be stopped by Phobos hand. She looked to the woman next to her and instantly sobered her face being a stoic mask.

"We're bound to you and where you go we'll follow." Phobos started her voice steady and sincere.

"But what you've asked, we will do." Deimos concluded.

Rei nodded in response satisfied with the answer. She then turned her attention back to the trench in the perfect circle around her and smiled ruefully remembering a lesson from what felt like ages ago. As young girl in training Rei had once asked her teacher how to summon Ju-Jak, her teacher a perpetually smiling elder had smirked and responded to simply build a fire. The young princess of Mars balked; surely an elaborate ceremony would be needed to call the elemental god of fire. The elder simply laughed at the naive princess.

"_Listen to me Rei, Ju-Jak is fire and so wherever there is fire there is Ju-Jak. But Ju-Jak is not like lesser fire spirits; Ju-Jak is fickle and doesn't like to be bothered so to call Ju-Jak specifically is dangerous. If the god is not willing to listen to you when you call then you will hear nothing. If you do get Ju-Jak to listen you must always pay a price for that time. So only call the mighty elemental god in the direst situations."_

"_But how would I do that" an eleven year old Rei demanded._

"_You build a fire young one, you build a mighty fire which will allow you to only focus on the fire, and you call Ju-Jak's name. That is how you call Ju-Jak, but it is up to Ju-Jak to respond, remember."_

With a ferocious roar Rei released her inner frustration causing the entire trench to erupt into an inferno exploding outward before taming slightly. The blaze inside the trench seemed to pace back and forth like a caged tiger, flames threatening to spill out but never spreading. Satisfied, Rei surveyed her handy work; the fire roared its displeasure at being contained but the Martian princess knew it would not leap out of its confines.

When she couldn't delay any longer Rei settled on the blanket, legs crossed comfortably, and her tattoo glowing softly in the fire's light. She could feel the heat of the flame, the familiar sound of crackling and rumbling filled her senses until all that was left was fire. Rei let the feeling of the fire surround her, fill her until she was overflowing with its power, and when she could contain herself no longer she uttered one word as quiet as a whisper on the wind.

Even before the elemental god's name had fully left her mouth she felt the stirring on her back which erupted outward in color and flame. Amethyst eye's shot open as the shimmering image of a phoenix on rose from the skin of her back, she needed no mirror to see that the tattoo of the elemental god was no longer glowing but as on fire as the god itself before her. Bright orange-red eyes regarded the ebony haired girl stoically, studying her carefully.

" A long time it's been since a daughter of Mars as called my name"

Rei could not help but stare in wonder as the voice of the elemental fire god washed over her like the sound of brazen bells tolling. A heartbeat later the Martian realized the phoenix god was waiting on her, reminded once again of her mission Rei snapped from her wonder and met those burning eyes with her own fierce gaze.

" I seek your sight concerning the visions I have seen of black fire"

The fire god seemed to consider her for a moment, its feathers fluffing and sparking with living flame in thought.

"My price is high young daughter of flame" the god paused drawing closer, "But you knew before you called me, sight is my price, my gift to you. Sight is my boon and my curse I grant. You who have cared for my twin daughters, I will grant your request."

With a powerful beat of its wings the fire god dove toward Rei in a shower of sparks and intense heat. Its shimmering beak connecting with the skin of Rei's forehead causing the symbol of Mars to flare into life as the elemental enclosed its huge wings around Rei engulfing her in darkness.

_Emptiness surrounded Rei giving her the feeling of floating in a sea of shadow. Slowly the darkness began to move and expand bulging with colors, gradually invading the space Rei occupied. The colors bled together forming fleeting images that disappeared when the Martian tried focused on them. They swirled together forming scenes and pictures which flowed seamlessly into each other in a never ending circulation of reflections of single moments lost to time. _

_The soft ebb and flow of images suddenly cracked and shattered causing the proud Martian to grip her head in pain. A flash of a stone lion under a strange stone gate morphed into a blinding white room with a white bed and a crying child, a stairway leading down into a room with 5 empty chairs, and finally the images blurred and focused abruptly on an image of herself dressed in a strange uniform and sobbing uncontrollably to the night sky as three other similarly dressed women looked on sadly. _

_The images began to form once again, expanding and increasing in number forming loose pictures of people, faces, and places. A flash of a dark haired girl in white and red looking up at the moon from some place below it, another dark haired girl with a strange hat pulled low over her face obscuring her features flooded Rei's mind with confusion and wonder. The reflections of another time had an air of familiarity and seemed to pull at Rei as she looked on trying to unlock its riddle. The dark haired girl with the partially obscured face seemed fixated on her hand and the red string of fate tied to her pinky but more Rei studied the image the more it dissipated leaving the Martian with a feeling of intense loneliness and longing. _

_Confused at her own reaction the Martian turned her attention once again to ebb and flow of what could be and what will be with a renewed sense of determination. Unrestricted images slowly began to solidify and increase in speed as they flashed by the attentive princess, a woman with long red hair glaring at the moon, Minako brandishing a large sword, Ami and Makoto sharing an intimate moment, white marble crumbling to the ground, and black fire eating away at garden in the Moon Palace. Finally the guardian of mars was viewing what she had come to see._

_Light and sound blurred into a tapestry of burning sensation causing the ebony haired girl to nearly loose the meager contents of her stomach from vertigo. A hazy image of Princess Serenity appeared talking and blushing to a tall dark figure of a man, his face was cast in shadow. The closer the two figures came together the more the background came into focus, the Sun turning darkness and the moon running cold with blood. _

_The ebony haired princess shivered violently, her rage and sadness building with the realization that this was the beginning of the end. It was the same end that the Time Guardian had spoken of, an end which would come no matter what, and as Rei looked on a feeling of certainty washed over her senses. _

_It was like a horrible game, the two figures tried vainly to fight their pull on one another but like magnets they were unable to fight the inevitable. It was then the ebony haired princess noticed the now blood red color of the thread of fate connecting the two figures, it was destiny and she was being a cruel mistress._

_Rei shouted at the figures not caring that her cries fell on deaf ears she screamed for them to stop, to look around, and to take note of the Sun behind them darkening and the moon at their feet running freely with the blood of innocents. Rei shouted until her voice was rough and gravely, trying vainly to stop the Princess of the moon from falling in love. When her energy was spent and the ebony haired Princess of Mars could speak no longer she fell to her knees and wept. The thought that love could bring about the end of an empire was too much. _

_" Do not cry child, if the Silver Millennium doesn't fall this way then it will fall in another more tragic way."_

_The brazen voice of Ju-Jak reverberated in now dark space offering little comfort to the weeping Martian._

_"Is there no happiness or peace to be found in love?" Rei barked out nearly choking on her tears "Is there nothing we can do? Why is fate so cruel?"_

_The darkness seemed to close in on the sullen princess as if considering her question carefully. _

_"Love won't survive if there is no balance, where is the cruelty in this?" _

With those last words Rei felt the darkness close in around her and settle in her bones. The dark haired Martian Princess felt as if her whole body were suddenly made of metal and sinking through sand. With a gasp air forced its way into her lungs breathing fire into dormant limbs suddenly on fire with sensation.

Velvety soft lips were pressed against her own; the heat of the inferno wrapped itself around her just as securely as the arms which were embracing her, and the darkness covering her vision. With a groan Rei pushed away from the comforting lips and the protective arms and immediately started to cough violently. In the back of the usually proud Martian's awareness she could hear comforting words and feel a soothing hand at her back but her only thoughts were of the vision she had just endured.

The images of rivers of blood, strange women, hazy scenes of fighting and dying swam up to the surface of Rei's mind and suddenly the inferno in the protective circle around her was too much. With a jerk of her hand, arm flying up to the side the exhausted princess cried a hoarse stop instantly extinguishing the flames; she could feel a flurry of movement and sound coming closer but no matter how much she rubbed and blinked her eyes the darkness would not lift.

Hands pulled at the confused Martian, sound dimmed to the thunder of blood pounding in her ears as Rei groped blindly at her face knowing her eyes were wide open and not seeing yet needing to make it real through touch. Her senses were exploding with stimulation, hazy colors of bright golden yellow to her right and firey red blended in Rei's mind eye causing the Martian no little amount of distress and confusion.

Finally a gruff voice filled with tears broke through the fog of disorientation. Rei could not help but turn toward the sound, fascinated that her blonde shadow had somehow found her.

"Oh Rei, your eyes…"

* * *

I apologize for the incredible lateness of this chapter, my uncle died of lung cancer over Christmas, a lot of things occurred, and my life spiraled out of control for a little bit. It sucks that we don't have a pause button for whenever something traumatic happens so we can process and deal with those emotions, sadly that isn't how life works. Life just keeps on rolling and if you like it or not you have to keep rolling with it or get rolled over by it. So I had to take a step back from writing and just focus on school and my emotional stability. Not to mention that I wrote and re-wrote this chapter about 10 times, I'm still not 100 satisfied with it but if I edit it anymore I will surely go insane.

As always feel free to leave comments, rants, and whatever else. I also promise not to make everyone wait 3 months for another update. I hope you enjoyed.

Krampus- lol I was a little bit stuck and also drawing out the wait, I hope it was semi-worth it. Thank you for commenting.

Phixa- Thanks and I 100 agree

Haruka's Knight- Thank you

Sailor Doc- I'm really humbled by your comment, not to mention it made me blush. Thank you so much and I had a lot of fun writing Rei's temper-tantrum. Actually I just have fun writing Rei in general.

Rikku's twin- lol Christmas stuff distracted me too, it happens. Thanks for reading and I hope I continue to please.

DavisJes- Again, thank you for the comment .

Trusuprise- Remember that darkness you were talking about yeah… you think I laid it on a bit heavy this chapter? Lol It makes me wonder how many fan fic authors have blinded their main character, hmm. Haha thanks for the lovely comment I always look forward to your insight.

LunarMiko07- Something about Minako stalking Rei in any sense of the word is hot, I think.

Heatqueen- thanks .


	8. Chapter 7

For the last four hours the twin guardians had kept the Princess of Venus from running head long into the inferno surrounding Rei. Even with constant verbal reminders that the hauntingly beautiful princess of Mars was in fact fireproof Minako had to be physically kept from running toward the inferno. However, as soon as the inferno winked out of existence and the slumped form of the dark haired seer came into view Minako shot past the two guardians straight toward Rei.

The twin guardians of flame Phobos and Deimos stood in shock as they watched the Princess of Venus cradling their injured charge while muttering unintelligible words. It was only when they saw the color drain from Minako's face the two were able to move into action. Phobos and Deimos abruptly took the weakened Princess of Mars from the protesting blonde warrior's arms. They had sworn an oath to take care of the youngest Martian royal and no amorous Venusian Princess would stop them from tending to their charge.

The twins gasped in startled dismay when Rei's face came into view her eyes had been turned to the color of coal and the area around the once amethyst colored iris were now an angry red. The swollen skin around the Martian's eyes had a light dusting of ash with a steady flow of blood red tears trickling down her equally pale face. What the twins didn't notice was the slight plume of smoke rising from the Martian's eyes or the stench of singed hair and skin. But Minako took it all in with clear steely eyes.

Phobos gently wiped the swollen area around Rei's eyes clean while Deimos tore the hem of her sleeve to tie over the remains of her charge's eyes while the Venusian stood carefully watching, anger rolling off her body in waves. Throughout the whole process the Martian princess remained quiet, unmoving, and passive; completely unlike her usual smoldering personality. When the Martian's eyes were covered the ebony head bowed, blood red tears still dripping from her chin. After a pause Rei slowly pushed herself on her feet in an attempt to reclaim her dignity.

"Take me to Queen Serenity"

The twin's whole demeanor changed at the quiet words of their Princess. Their Rei may have been injured but she was still the proud Avatar of Fire, the daughter of the planet of Mars and there was a mission to finish. Phobos and Deimos twisted their fists over their hearts and bowed to their Princess with twin cries of Rei's Martian title, "Gong-ju!"

Immediately the twins set to work hoisting Rei onto the horse Venus had brought. The two guardians worked in silence with their exhausted charge to carefully situate Rei in front of the blonde. Once saddled up the Martian reached a blind hand toward the stonily silent Venusian commander who softened instantly and pulled the injured Martian more snuggly against herself.

"I feel your confusion and anger like a steady wind at my back; I'll answer whatever questions you have after I talk with the Queen."

The worried look which had permanently etched its way onto the blonde's features deepened then smoothed into a look of determination as she squeezed Rei's hand meaningfully.

"You'll tell me everything then"

The remaining ride back to the moon palace was wrapped in tense silence with the unusually passive Martian snuggled in protective golden arms.

* * *

Once they reached the palace Rei seemed to have found her strength once again and she pushed off the back of the horse forcefully causing Minako to shoot her a strange almost hurt look. The Martian, unable to see the Venusian's gaze, rose to her full height heedless of her dusty traveling cloak, messy dirt smudged hair, and the image of her blind-folded face still looked every bit the proud Martian Princess.

"Deimos, Phobos I need your eyes"

Rei's voice usually a combination of silky yet dangerous undertones had taken on a softer almost husky quality. It was as if the ebony haired Martian had not used her voice in weeks and was just now finding her voice. To the eerily calm Princess, it did feel like weeks had passed.

The proud Avatar of Flame was a sight to behold as she purposefully marched into the silver throne room of the Silver Queen Serenity flanked by two menacing looking Martian warriors and followed by an uncharacteristically fierce looking Venusian. She was in stark contrast to the gleaming throne room, dark and covered in a layer of dust with a ragged black cloth covering once bright amethyst eyes. The youngest Martian Princess had a look of grim determination which was only offset by the slow trickles of thick red blood streaming from under her eye covering. The two ebony clad guardians flanking Rei had similar looks of determination as they led their charge toward the shocked Silver Queen.

Once at the foot of the throne, Rei paused to angle her face toward Queen Serenity as if peering up at her curiously. A pregnant pause stilled the room. The achingly beautiful Silver Queen poised at the edge of her throne as if ready come down from her gleaming marble pedestal, the dark clothed Martian Princess covered in filth and blood gazed curiously up with unseeing eyes, and the other planetary soldiers stood in shock unsure of what to do and only able to watch. A soft raspy voice broke the stillness causing both Mercury and Jupiter's eyes to widen at the voice's quality.

"Even in my newly darkened world, you shine like a gentle silver light in a starless sky."

The tension in the room sharpened and unknown to the Martian at the front of the room Ami took a step forward only to be held back by Jupiter. Queen Serenity glanced up at the blue haired princess with sadness in her eyes before turning her attention fully to the Martian Princess.

"I was told by Pluto to be ready to meet with my Avatar of Flame at this time on this day. I see that you have suffered much to acquire insight on our behalf so tell me what you have learned."

It was plain to all in the room that the Silver Queen was allowing the proud Martian to keep her dignity so the other planetary warriors held back respectfully. Rei for her part seemed to sag slightly as if the weight of her story was pressing down on her form. But as the Martian began to tell of how she was able to summon Ju-Jak the Phoenix god of fire and what she was shown Rei seemed to swell with authority. Until finally the ebony haired Martian faltered, her voice losing strength as her unseeing gaze fell to the floor.

" My Queen, we live at the end of an age and darkness will cover the sun and cause the moon to run red with blood."

_After Rei's quiet announcement the ebony haired Martian was attacked with questions regarding the how, why, and are you sure. Rei could feel the colorful auras flare in distress while the silvery glow of Queen Serenity merely darkened. The lack of response triggered the blindfolded Martian and she lifted her sightless gaze to the Queen, ignoring the other senshi. _

_" You knew" It wasn't a question but an accusation._

_The silver light that shined so prominently in Rei's senses dulled for the first time. All other sounds in the throne room died and the Martian could feel the guardians at her side stiffen along with the other senshi. The Queen sighed heavily and the dark haired princes could hear rustling of clothes, the Queen was fidgeting. _

_"When I first heard about a little Martian princess that could light her hands on fire without being consumed I knew war was upon us." _

_Rei could feel the gaze of the Queen on her face, silently apologizing to her, pleading with the young Martian for something Rei couldn't understand. The emotions were running high in the room, her own burned at the back of her throat. _

"_Soon after I heard of the extraordinary princesses from the other planets and knew the senshi had been awakened. But it didn't stop with the inner alliance, Neptune and Uranus had been awakened but most importantly Saturn had been born. I knew then it would only be a matter of time before the Warrior of Death and Rebirth would be called to fulfill her duty."_

* * *

Rei frowned at the memory, it had only been a few hours after her return and yet it felt like years had passed. After the terrible meeting with Queen Serenity Ami had insisted on looking at the Martian's eyes and Rei didn't need her sight to know the stricken look on the Mercurian's face the flare of the blue aura said it all. There was nothing the genius could do for the blind Martian her sight had been veiled, no light could penetrate.

The Martian punched at the steamy air of the hot springs, her frustration rising to boiling point in her veins. She had been prepared to die, she was ready but the fire god took her eyes instead. What was a warrior with no sight? How can does an archer shoot with no eyes? What good am I in a battle with no vision?

"Useless" the ebony haired girl muttered. " Useless and broken"

The enclosed hot spring had become a haven for the Princess, it was secluded and quiet. After a long tension relieving soak Rei could sit by the glass door that lead to the balcony and let the light of the earth bathe her in soft light. But today the dark princess got no comfort from the serene atmosphere or the warm darkness that surrounded her. Today was different, even if she lit candles light would not reach her and that knowledge keep the beautiful Martain bent over in a corner of the balcony like a forlorn child.

So caught in her misery that when a pair of strong arms enclosed the blind princess it was a shock that Rei stiffened and struggled against, but the arms only tightened until the Martian stilled to tired to fight.

"You can't hide from me, I'll always find you" the quiet voice cut through the silence.

"What do you want?" Rei sighed, beyond tired as she surrendered bonelessly to the Venusian's embrace but not returning it.

"My answers, Reiko" The Martian would normally stiffen at the name and the Venusian's arms tensed slightly as if preparing for it but when Rei continued to lay sullenly the arms loosened. Rei thought the senshi commander was pulling away and hung her head but when she felt the whisper traces of fingers on her cheek she turned questioningly.

"My answers" This time it was whispered close to the Martians ear as the feather light touches moved to her hair and to the blind fold's knot at the back of her head. Deft fingers worked the fabric free and eased it from Rei's face. "When I first saw you it was like a vision of onyx silk, you stole my breath and everyone else's in the room. But you always resist my presence and hide from my company do I repulse you that much?"

"No"

"Then why?"

The fingers returned to the beautiful Martian's face gently tracing every curve and contour as if memorizing ever pore. Unable to hide, and tired of the fighting the Martian turned closed eyes toward her pinky clearly sensing the pink string tied there.

"If love is truly your element, can you see?" Rei motioned toward her pinky " I'm tied and it's intensity is frightening"

"I see it and my heart feels it's power" A soft hand traveled from Rei's face, down her neck and shoulders, along her arms, to caress the smallest digit on the Martian's hand before boldly entwining their fingers.

"Does this intensity still frighten you?" The words were soft, husky and in complete contrast to the pounding in Rei's chest and shallow breathing. But for once the Martian didn't feel trapped or cornered and despite the rapid heartbeat and shallow breaths she felt comforted. Here wrapped in Venus' embrace Rei felt comfortable and cared for.

" Yes, so don't leave" The Martian more felt then heard the throaty chuckle and the soft lips that pressed themselves against her forehead. The tenderness of the action swelled up in Rei's throat causing her to breathe deeply to try and push it down, but it only bubbled upward in a loud sniff.

Minako immediately gathered Rei more firmly into her arms, painting soothing circles along her back in an attempt to physically quell the rising tears. But soon the tears spilled over ivory cheeks and Rei pressed her face into the Venusian's neck as sobs wracked her body.

"Where did my proud Martian go to?" The quiet voice asked as the sobs died down.

"Lost in darkness", Rei choked out as a new wave of sobs tore through her, raw emotion pouring from her eyes and shaking her body with its intensity. She was vaguely aware of being rocked and a quiet voice in her ear saying, "Then let me be your light."

I'm not sure how much I like this chapter, the begining and middle were rough to write but that could be due to the fact its the end of the semester and everyday is stressful day. I sort of regret all the things I took on this semester only because it feels as if there is not enough hours in the day to complete them. Oh well- it will get done and it will be good somehow.

I know some of you were not sure about me blinding Rei, it was a difficult choice for me too. But it has further implications so just trust me.

**F75** and **heatqueen**- thank you I'm hoping I updated soon enough  
**After All Ever After**- Thank you and your right, that was my rational for blinding my favorite senshi. I hope I continue to entertain.  
**Balticbard**- Thank you for your kind words they mean alot, it has been hard but I'm getting through it all.  
**DavisJes**- I took your advice and took my sweet time .  
**trusuprise**- its always a joy to hear from you, and the more I thought about the silmil senshi the more I thought that they had to be much stronger therefore struggling much harder against their power corrupting them. I guess part of my issue with Salior Moon was the purity and how I always thought, "no way- If i could shoot flame snipper I'd abuse the mess out of it" so I wrote that into the story. I think the flaws make them more human. And your correct, my Rei is uber stand-offish and i've had so much fun writing her.  
**Rikku's twin**- Always good to hear from you, thank you for commenting.  
**Phixa**- I think some minako loving wouldn't hurt .  
**Jarred706**- Its ok to repeat yourself, I don't judge. Thank you for reviewing and I hope to continue writing in a way that keeps you hooked.  
**sporadic101**- I enjoy Minako doing the chasing too! Its alot of fun to write, and in my head it makes more sense then Rei always doing the chasing. Besides this will come into play much later.  
**LunarMiko07**- No thank you for being patient with me. I've spent alot of time thinking of how i would cope with going blind and how i think my Rei would cope and its been challenging.  
**Illyria22**- Thank you for not thinking my story was dull, lol. But I know what you mean with the SilMil open to so many possibilities it is difficult sometimes to make a good story due to the fact that there are no boundaries. Its wonderful to know that my attempt has been sucessful so far.


	9. Chapter 8

Wow, I've been gone for a while. School sucker punched me in the face, but I didn't forget this fic. I just had to shelf it for a while. However I am back now, and I want to thank everyone that left comments during my long absence. I hope you enjoy this next installment, it is most likely the darkest chapter i've written yet. Also, because this story is written entirely from Rei's point of view I leave out a lot of other events that Rei is not apart of, i decided this to make sure the Reader is not confused by alot of jumping around.

* * *

" It has …begun"

The dark princess sat on her bed, the light of the fire casting long shadows about her room. Beside her the Princess of Venus peacefully slept, unaware of the tumultuous thoughts raging through the Martian.

Rei had been awake for over and hour thinking over everything she knew and trying vainly to find a loop hole. All the Senshi had awaken even Saturn. Saturn's Avatar, still a young girl, was not present at the ceremony where the other senshi received their planetary crystals because the girl's secret power. The official story was that she was much to young to accept the power of the Saturn Crystal into her young body and that story seemed to appease the ignorant nobles and aristocrats who were only concerned with face and status. No the real reason was there was no crystal to bestow, it had already been bestowed on the young girl upon her awakening. Because if Saturn had awakened then she meant to do one thing and one thing only.

"Bring destruction to everything" Rei sighed as she absently ran her fingers along the slumbering Venus side.

The people of the Silver Millennium had always seen the senshi as the mystical royal soldiers that awakened just when the kingdom needed them. To the masses they were no more then a legend that served the purpose of putting the minds of the people at ease. Soldiers of legend that were the vessels of phenomenal power, they were not mortal, nor where they imbued with the ability to make mistakes because they were legendary soldiers. The public didn't think on how these young girls were robbed of a childhood or put under an incredible amount of pressure, no they were in existence for one purpose, and that purpose was putting the minds of the masses at ease. Now as strife and discord continued to build the Martian sensed that more then ever the senshi were truly needed. Wars were inevitable but their frequency was mounting and with the building darkness, looming in the distance the end was sure to come regardless.

A sense of hopelessness filled Rei as a ragged sigh tore through her being. The blind princess felt uneasy as if something was still missing from the picture, some piece of the puzzle yet to be revealed and it frightened her. With head bowed slightly the Martian allowed her thoughts to delve darker.

In her vision, she had seen the Prince of Earth and Princess Serenity tied to a hopeless love. It was that love that sparked the beginning of the end. The Princess of the Moon was powerful in her own right, the Martian had felt the power herself. However the ability to bring about ultimate destruction laid only with Saturn, which meant that while the Princess may begin the end of their age it would be little Saturn that finished it all. And while the dark princess of Mars was away receiving her vision of the end times, the Moon kingdom was busy receiving a royal delegation from Earth.

"It all moves so quickly," the Martian muttered to herself, " No time to even catch our breathes".

The Avatar of flame shifted on the bed still deep in thought, as the ebony clock in her room seemed to grow in girth as the shadows lengthened in the room. Pluto must have known that the end was on the horizon. There has always been tension between the Moon kingdom and the Earth. The Earth had refused to join in the Planetary Alliance and so had been in isolation for centuries. As a result, the Earthlings were considered backwards, behind on the times. They did not enjoy the scientific advancement of the Silver Millennium and treated magic as if it were the plague. It was widely known that the Earthlings were a dim-witted, superstitious, and a culture as foreign to the Silver Millennium as possible.

So when the new Prince of Earth requested an audience with Queen Serenity, much of the Silver Millennium was in shock and suspicious of his motives. Rei herself was just as suspicious for as long as she had been alive a strange malicious aura had settled itself on the planet, and this aura only grew with each passing year.

" If only we had time" the Martian murmured to herself a frowning lightly.

The dark princess moved then, slowly feeling out her surroundings, still not use to her lack of physical eyes. Carefully, with measured movements the Avatar of Mars leaned over the still sleeping Venusian. Long fingers ghosted over the features of the slumbering girl pausing at slightly parted lips. Rei moved then, pulled by some unseen force toward those lips. Just a millimeter away the ebony haired princess stopped, staring with unseeing eyes into a peaceful face.

" I would spill all my blood to see you safe but my end has already been foretold, I'm to be as a rising phoenix." Rei started, breathing her words passed slightly parted lips. " My price I'll pay, so remember me in the next life even if I don't. Remember me and I'll find you, our souls are tied together".

Rei then sealed her words into the Venusian with a soft press of her lips. The kiss was a boldness fueled by the desperate knowledge that the wheel of destruction had already been set to motion, and a fueled by the equal amount of sorrow that she would not have the time to explore her tie with the beautiful Venusian. The blind princess could feel war bubbling up in her blood, tension lay heavy in the air, and the taint of darkness had already caused the the sun to dim. While in this moment of quiet the Martian knew that outside the peaceful confines of her quarters armies mounted, tactics of battle were being drawn up, and fate herself was reading her axe.

What good were senshi if destiny had already decided on a course of action? What purpose did her powers provide if Queen Serenity had already seen their doom spelled out in the sheer amount of senshi awakened? What kind of cosmic joke was being played?

Its true that for all of Rei's young life she had known she lived at the end of an age. Her people, the war like people of Mars, had begun to write down their history for the first time in a millennium. Techniques for fighting of all kinds were being recorded and hidden, while the Planet Mars itself became colder with each passing year. Other planets faced similar situations; Mercury had become so hot its citizens had created protective bio-domes simply to stand the increased temperature. The storms of Jupiter became fiercer and larger in all recorded history while Venus surface began to give off toxic gas. It was as if the galaxy itself was shifting and the only planet not affected was little Earth, little Earth filled with it's barbarians that reeked of darkness.

Now on the brink of monumental change, the senshi awaken to a world filled with unrest to usher in new age.

"And we will usher in that age with the blood of the Silver Millennium on a pedestal made of our broken bodies"

Fate sure was being a bitch.

Rei silently padded toward her balcony and stood in the weak light of the Earth until she heard the familiar beating of wings. As Phobos and Deimos landed on the balcony railing next to their mistress, a new determination straightened the Princess of Mar's shoulders.

" Phobos, Deimos we will need to build a fire-pit. The Moon kingdom will go to war in the coming days and it would be un-Martian of me to take this destiny of ours with sword sheathed." The blind princess paused then, turning her face back toward the dark confines of her room, " Also tell my brother to ready his army for a war like no other." The two ravens cawed excitedly and flapped their wings with barely restrained eagerness. " If this is our destiny then lets make sure to show the empire how Martians greet destiny."

* * *

The afternoon was clear and a strange hush had fallen over the world as the ebony haired Princess of Mars walked toward the outer wall of the moon palace. A vision of bone, blood, and broken bodies littering the outer wall struck the blind Princess and she staggered under its weight. Rei knew the delegation hadn't gone smoothly; it was just a rouse to start the fighting.

As each of the planets in the alliance began to slowly die the dim-witted Earthlings knew that it would be only a matter of time before they would go to Earth, and that in Rei's opinion was most likely when the darkness began.

Now the Avatar of Flame and Passion shook with barely restrained horror as an image of ten thousand misshapen demons readied themselves for battle. With a violent shake of her head Rei literally shook the image from her mind and turned herself to the task of readying the fire pit just outside the walls of the palace.

Rei worked through the afternoon, her and her two guardians working silently and intently. The ebony haired Marian worked through the feeling of tension which radiated throughout the castle as a messenger approached it's large silver gates. The Princess of Fire continued to work undaunted as the stifled cry of alarm that went through the palace as the decree for war went up. She continued to work just as intently even as she felt the other senshi looking for her during the falling dusk, no doubt to discuss battle tactics. As night took the whole of the moon into its grip the Princess of Mars finally took a step back from her day's work, sweat soaked her form, and dirt caked every exposed part of her skin along with her clothes.

It finally was ready.

As she surveyed her work, feeling the lines of power around the fire pit she had toiled over the Avatar of Mars felt a familiar presence coming toward her. A small smile graced her dirt covered features as she reached up to tighten the cover over her eyes.

" You always seem to know where to find me Ami."

A soft chuckle came from the reserved Mercurian, " Its not hard to figure out where a Martian Princess would be on the eve of war", a pause and then Rei felt the other Princess grow serious. "Minako is upset. We had to conduct the tactics meeting without you."

Rei turned then as if meeting the gaze of the other warrior a light frown gracing her features, " Thats Venus' duty not mine. Mine is here"

"Building a big bonfire?"

The Martian bristled slightly at the sarcastic tone, but remained silent.

"Rei, we are a team. I know you've seen the end, but if its the end we face then we face it together." The blue haired princess sighed. " Don't shoulder the whole burden onto yourself"

"Can you make water wells in the plain outside of these walls?" The blind princess asked

" What?" Ami replied, thrown off by the sudden shift.

" Can you make wells in the plain here?" Rei repeated.

" What for- refugees... " Ami caught on. " Yes that would be easy to get a team to construct..." She trailed off " But how soon?"

" Soon, in fact the sooner the better." Rei replied.

There was silence for a moment, Rei could practically feel the wheels turn in the Mercurian's head as she thought through the request and it's implications.

"I'll have them done in 3 days tops." Ami stated, her voice laced with determination, " I'll have a refugee camp sight readied also"

" You also... may want to see about Jupiter. She is looking for you back in the palace" Rei said, a smug grin crossing her features as she looked side long toward her companion.

"How do you know these things?" Ami asked incredulously

" If Makoto throws around her power anymore in her frustration I'll be surprised if someone doesn't get zapped." Rei replied with a small laugh, she could feel the smaller woman blushing a bright red.

Small hands grabbed the Martian's shoulders and squeezed them affectionately, " Rei, remember we will all be with you until the very end. We are a team".

As the other girl's foot steps walked away the fiery princess bowed her head and mouthed a silent thank you to the retreating form.

With the Mercurian gone, Rei stood a moment gathering her energy and centering herself. Then with a motion to her guardians to step back she knelt on the ground before the pit, both palms to the moon; and with a guttural roar Rei dug her fingers into the dirt under her palms bringing fistfuls of soil upward before letting the dirt slide from her fingers. It started then; she tore at the clothes on her back as the ancient Martian war chant fell from her lips. With both palms open she beat at her chest once, emphasizing the chant, her body moving with the rhythm of the tribal beat, fist in the air as she danced faster and faster. Rei's body moved with the feral grace of a cat, jumping and spinning all the while chanting until finally with a loud roar the pit erupted into a blazing inferno.

As Rei stood panting from exertion she felt two arms wrap themselves gingerly around her torso, arms that the fiery Martian gratefully sank into.

"Mars goes to war." her companion said into damp locks of ebony hair.

"All Martians will feel the call of this fire and set their blades to sharpening for the coming battle." Rei replied solemnly

"Impressive"

The Dark Princess of Flame allowed herself a tiny smile then, drawing the arms around her to hold her more securely as she murmured, "What will be impressive is the way we all will perish".

Arms tightened around her as a kiss was pressed into Rei's shoulder, " Its true then? Every Martian wishes for the honor of dying in battle?"

Ebony hair shook slightly as Rei turned her head from side to side slowly, " No, not just battle. True glory comes from fighting to protect what you care most about and giving your life to that end".

Rei's voice was raw with emotion and her exhaustion, and she could feel the Venusian commander caught in the power of her own emotion through the shaking of her body. With a deep breath Rei steeled herself and turned in those protective arms. With a gentleness rarely seen long fingers reached up to cup a soft cheek wet with tears; A light frown dusted the Martian's lips as she attempted to brush away the Venusian's tears with the dirty pads of her thumbs.

"I've seen our end Minako and it is unavoidable. I will do everything in my power to prolong our time here, but even I know these moments and this life is numbered. Cry tonight and lose your emotion onto me, but tomorrow show no one your sorrow and do the duty fate has assigned to you."

The blond commander lifted her hands to the back of the Dark Princess's head, untying the black blindfold with deft fingers. "I miss your eyes, they were the most expressive part of you".

Rei smiled ruefully then, " I miss them more. Don't worry, you'll see them again"

"Not soon enough". the Venusian replied quickly

Rei smiled sadly at her companion as images of her vision filtered through her mind, a lost little girl crying in a room of white, the same lost girl sweeping large stone steps under a foreign red gate.

"What are you thinking?" the words were whispered into the pensive Martian's ear.

"I wonder about the next life and what hardships we will face then" Rei murmured.

"Can't be harder then the destruction of the galaxy." the Venusian sarcastically replied.

The brooding Martian remained quiet unable to get the image of a crying little girl out of her mind.

* * *

tbc...


End file.
